Best/Worst Times To Travel On Area Interstates

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOX) — The end of August brings the end of summer vacations, the start of school and the return to increased traffic on area highways.

One of the most congested stretches of interstate in St. Louis continues to be Interstate 64 from Route 94 in St. Charles County to east of Interstate 270 in St. Louis County.

The August report indicates the most severe congestion starts earlier and lasts longer in the morning than it did in June or July. The report focuses on eastbound travel from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and westbound travel from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Here are the results for the morning commute in August:

Travel times begin to slow down between 7 and 7:15 a.m.

The worst time to travel is between 7:15 and 8 a.m.

Travel times don’t fully improve until after 8:45 a.m. especially at the slow down spot of eastbound I-64 between Route 141 and Mason Road.

Here are the results for the evening commute:

Travel times begin to slow down between 4:30 and 5 p.m.

The worst time to travel is between 5 and 5:45 p.m.

Travel times don’t fully improve until after 6 p.m. especially at the Missouri River bridge, which has a reduced speed limit due to its narrow conditions.

“By knowing the worst time to travel, we are asking all I-64 drivers to consider adjusting their travel times to spread out the peak demand. By leaving 15 minutes earlier or waiting until closer to the end of the peak period, you could actually get to your destination faster,” said Tom Blair, MoDOT assistant district engineer.

“It’s not feasible to widen the highway due to the extreme costs that it would entail, but we can all work together to spread out the demand on the road.”

Motorists should also consider using other major highways to travel east and west including Route 364 to the north and I-44 to the south. Carpooling and using mass transit are also encouraged to decrease congestion.

For real-time traffic information, visit MoDOT’s traffic site at gatewayguide.com. On the site, you can sign up for personal email alerts to your mobile device or email on “MYSTLTRAFFIC”.